Thursday, February 26, 2009

Ok, so most of you know that I have a terrible addiction to Diet Coke. I wake up in the morning and drink one, usually have another before lunch, another at lunch, another after lunch, one with dinner and possibly one in the evening. Yes, I do know how bad it is for me and I also know that most of you are probably thinking "how in the world can anyone drink so much soda in a day?" Well, diet coke to me is like coffee is to most others. It is a total addiction!!!!The past two weeks I have been working really hard at reducing the number of sodas I have. I got down to about three a day and was feeling really good about myself. Today, I decided that I needed to see how long I could go without one. So, I woke up, drank water, lots of water. Got a huge headache that has lasted most of the day. Withdrawals? Yes, I think so.Around 2pm I could barely stand it. My head hurt so bad, I almost caved in. But then Gordon suggested having a cup of coffee with creamer in it to get rid of the caffeine withdrawal head-ache. I don't do coffee!! Yuck! But I wanted to try it instead of caving in, so I put a cup of coffee together, got it luke warmish (I don't like really hot drinks), and then I chugged it. I wanted the head-ache to disappear. The coffee wasn't all that bad, but it was by no means great, either. The head-ache lessened, but didn't go away. At least it was tolerable. I am going to have a soda tonight. Gordon is so proud of me for sticking to my guns and not drinking soda all day, but he also doesn't want me to relapse. Hence, the soda tonight! I am like a kid on Christmas morning! I can't wait to open that shiny, cylindrical shaped present to get to what is inside!!!!Tomorrow is another day. I will do it again. Maybe in a week or so, I won't think about my diet soda every waking second!!!!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Today was a family field trip/life lesson day for us and the kids. Our breeder and co-owner of Faith, Diann, met us at our house at 10:30 this morning and we all piled into the Suburban and went on an adventure.

We drove up to Surrey, Canada to visit a vet office that specializes in reproduction of dogs and has an ultrasound machine to look at the puppies. The kids thought that they were going to see actual puppies, but we explained that they would probably just see black blobs. They asked why we were doing this then and we told them to see if we could count how many blobs and also to verify that Faith is actually pregnant. When Diann does a breeding, this is her life-long career. She puts 110% of herself into making sure we have a successful breeding and healthy puppies.

They took us into a room and we put Faith up on a table and the vet shaved a spot on her belly. Then we turned on the machine and WHALAA!!! This is what we saw:

The vet said she could count at least 6, but there are probably more. Faith is only into day 28 of 62, so there could be some still hidden that we didn't see. The second picture, if you look closely, you can see a white blob in the middle of the black. That is the puppy. On the machine you could actually see the outline of the fetus. It was extremely cool.

After we were done with the appointment, Diann took us to a little sandwich shop called "Java Hut". We had soup and sandwiches and the kids had pizza. While we were sitting there, it started to snow. Crazy! Since we have been back home, it has been snowing and blowing. We already have about 3 inches. But I don't care. I am all warm and fuzzy inside because I now know for sure that my little Faithy is pregnant!!! Yeah!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

I am such a ding-dong. Tuesday afternoons Sierra has ballet class. I woke up this morning all excited for dance class because today is the day the kids get their costumes for their recital. I have been waiting for this day. Why you might ask?Because I used to dance and I always thought it was so fun to get to dress up in these awesome costumes that the teacher took so much time to come up with. I know it sounds silly, but I really was excited.So of course, Sierra complains that she doesn't want to go to dance. She always complains, but then loves it once she is there. I told her she got her costume today. Her response-"so".Talk about deflation! She couldn't even summon up a little bit of excitement for me!When we got to class, I could see the teacher sorting them all out. Yippee!! Sierra got excited as soon as she saw the costume, and just about freaked out when she found out they got to try them on and dance the routine with them. Yeah!! Now we are talking! Costumes and pretty little girls jumping around not having a clue what they are doing! So much fun for mommy.Brings back a lot of memories for me....

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Ok, so according to Evan who had a long heart to heart with daddy last night, he never lied, he just never told the truth. This is the story according to Evan. I still haven't checked it against Jacob's story, but I don't have any reason to doubt Evan. He was very clearly told the consequence for not telling the truth.

Jacob and Evan were kicking the soccer ball around. Jacob decided to throw rocks at a tree trunk. One of the rocks deflected off of the tree and hit the Jeep window. They heard it hit, but didn't realize that the window actually broke. They continued to play soccer. When the ball went up by the car, Evan ran to get it, saw the window and told Jacob to come see. At that moment Jacob said, "oh man, I am busted!" Evan said,"let's go tell your mom", and Jacob said no. They continued to play until Jenn noticed her window. At that time, she questioned the boys and Jacob started saying it wasn't them. When Jenn asked Evan, he told her that Jacob was throwing rocks at the tree, but one deflected off the tree and hit the window but they didn't know that it broke. When Bill separated them and questioned them (such a cop!), Evan stuck to his story.Now, remember, this is Evan's story and we haven't completely verified it yet, so it could be a little off, but we did give him the chance to make sure he was telling all of the truth.His punishment for not saying anything about it is as follows.He is grounded for a week. He can't play with his slot car track (which happens to be his favorite thing to do right now), no Hot Wheels on the computer, limited TV watching, and he had the choice of talking to Bill and Jenn directly and telling them how sorry he is, or to right a letter to them. He chose to write the letter, so that is what he will do during his free time. He has all this week to think about what he wants to write and to get it done in legible writing with correct punctuation and spelling. A life lesson and a school lesson rolled into one.Anyways, that is the current update.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Evan has a best friend. His name is Jacob. Jacob and Evan met when they both started playing soccer in preschool. They found out that they would be at the same school, in the same class and they became best friends. They are always together at school, they have the same interests and they think they should be brothers.If there is an early release Wednesday at school, the boys have made it known that they need to go to one or the others house to play for the day. They love to have sleep-overs on the weekend and they spend hours together playing on Jacob's trampoline or in Evan's room playing with cars and tracks. Basically, they just love being together.

Today, Jacob called at 8:15am wondering if Evan was on his way up to his house yet. So, we got the kids ready and took them up for a play date. Sierra plays with Jacob's sister, Anna, so it works out that no one is left out when there is a play date.Anyways, the plan was for them to play at Jacob's house and then Bill and Jenn would bring the kids all here for a sleep-over so that they could go on date night. Just a few minutes ago, Jenn brought my two kids home but there was no Jacob, no Anna, and no Bill.Turns out, Bill told Jenn to bring my kids home because Jacob and Evan were a little too rambunctious and Jacob threw a rock through their Jeep window. Now, granted, that is bad enough, but what really got them all in trouble was the fact that they pretended it didn't happen and went about their playing and never told anyone. Yikes!! Then to top it off, they tried to come up with an excuse and say they don't know how it happened. Double Yikes!!Needless to say, Jacob is in big trouble at his house, and Evan is in big trouble at our house. Why can't kids understand that if they just tell an adult when something bad happens, they are in less trouble than not saying anything at all or flat out lying about it?Evan is very in to getting money and having it in his wallet. Maybe a good punishment would be to give Bill what he has in there to pay for a new window? What do you all think?

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

#1. If you forget to put pellets in the stove at night, your house will be very cold when you get up.

#2. When you don't turn on the light in the laundry room before you walk in to put the dogs out, chances are you willslip on a dog toy. Yep, a tennis ball. Ouch!

#3. If you forget to change the batteries in your smoke detectors at the first of the year, one close to your bedroom will beep all night.

#4. You can put too much bleach in a load of dirty dog blankets.

#5. When you go to bed and your house is dirty, it will be dirty in the morning. Believing in the tooth fairy is one thing; a house-cleaning fairy is just crazy!

#6. When you fold laundry at 9:30pm and leave it on the couch to put away the next day, it will still be there in the morning.

#7. When you have a pregnant dog, she will have very stinky toots!!!!!!

#8. When you go out to feed chickens and see if there are any eggs yet this morning, big grouchy momma chicken will peck your hand and hiss at you if you get near her nesting box!

#9. When your son tells you that he can go out to the bus by himself and he doesn't need you to walk with him, don'tcall your husband at work, crying, to tell him you are sad because your child is growing up. It will freak out husband and they don't like to be freaked out first thing in the morning!!!

Monday, February 16, 2009

Although it is not our wedding anniversary, Gordon and I celebrate today 27 years of being together. We started dating on February 16, 1982. Can you believe it? We have been through a lot together, both good and bad, and we have made a wonderful life together with our kids and our farm.

Gordon, Thank you for being my best friend, and my husband.I love you very very much. Have a great day at work and I will see you tomorrow.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

I had a great Valentine's weekend. Most of you probably won't agree with that once you read my blog, but to me, it was an awesome weekend.I started out my Saturday feeding animals and getting Sierra ready for her birthday party she was going to, and Carson ready to take home after his sleep-over. Gordon was on his way home from work and Evan had a sleep-over at his bestest buddy, Jacob's, house. I took Carson home and traded him in for his sister, Cheyanne. It was Tim's birthday yesterday and he planned on sitting in front of the TV watching Nascar, so Cheyanne needed to get out of the house. Anyways, when I got back to the house, Sierra's friend had come to get her for the party. Gordon, Cheyanne and I loaded up the trailer and went to the Everson Beef Auction. Yeah! Auction burger!! They are the best!! Anyways, after 4 hours of sitting on a cold wood bench and watching cow after cow come and go, we finally went to get our trailer to load up our newest purchase. Bo, our black angus steer, was coming home with us. While waiting to get in line to back our trailer up, a cow got loose and took off down the street. The auction guys, Gordon, and a few older farmers who weren't much help, took off down the road after them. They finally corraled him and got him settled. Then we got our cow and headed for home. On the way, we stopped and picked up Sierra at her friends house. When we got home, I took Cheyanne to her house to get some clothes so she could spend the night. Cheyanne loves the church we go to and every other weekend, she tries to go with us. We had a great dinner of pulled pork sandwiches and salad, then we sat around the table and played UNO together. We had a good time, but we were all getting tired, so off to bed we went.This morning we all got up and headed off to church. This weekend was baptism in all 4 services. Brenden Jensen, who is a friend of Evan's, was getting baptised this morning. His parents, Kurt and Karen, went through adoption at the same time as us and we have very similar stories. We all became very good friends and we were so proud of Brenden today. I even got a little teary eyed. Anyways, after church, we ran to Costco and then had lunch at Subway. I love Subway and my kids are starting to choose it over McDonald's. Yes!!! Now we are home and it is a beautiful day outside. I have lots to do, so I better get to it!!! I hope you all enjoyed your weekends, also.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Hi all,I am challenging all of you to make a list. This list should consist of things you love about your significant other. If you have been married for 10 years, list 10 things. One for each year. If 5 years, 5 things, and so on and so on. DON'T type this list out. Print it on a nice sheet of paper and give it to your special someone. It adds a personal touch to hand write it. If you are not married, pick someone very special in your life and list one thing for every year you have known them.Gordon and I have been married almost 18 years, but I have known him for 27 (yep, 27). Valentine's Day isn't really all that special to us. We started dating February 16, 1982, so that is the special day we celebrate. I will be using that number (27) to make my list.Just remember, right now times are tough and things are just too expensive. A gift from your heart doesn't cost a dime, but means millions to the person you share it with.I don't want you to post your lists. They are between the two of you. Have fun, enjoy and Happy Love Day to all.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

So, I decided that while I am studying to become a Medical Transcriptionist, I could still do something to help out our family income. I really don't want to be away from the kids or events that they have at school, and I don't want something to interupt Gordon's work schedule. I finally decided that there really wasn't anything out there so I should just plug along at the studying and get done with that so I can start working from home. Still my plan, but a great opportunity presented itself to me.My friend Toni has a little girl in Sierra's preschool class. One day the preschool made lunch for the moms so Toni and I sat together and started talking. She and her husband own and operate a janitorial service and they work every night of the week, plus he has a full-time job during the day and she cares for all of her kids and her grandmother. They decided it was time to get someone to help them out a couple of nights a week. As I was talking to her, I realized that this could be a great thing for me. Their biggest client is a vet clinic right up the road from me. So, now I work two nights a week for them. I can go in to clean at 6pm when the office closes or I can wait until my kids are sleeping and go in later. I just have to get it done before the next morning. Last night was my first solo night. HOLY COW!!! It was a lot of work!!I start out by taking out all the recycle. Then I go around and collect garbage from the 50 or so garbage cans. This takes about an hour! Dusting and cleaning the bathrooms comes next. Then I have to vacuum the whole building. Last night this took me about an hour. My back and arms were killing me! And to my horror I realized that I still had to mop the whole place. Yikes!Needless to say, I finished all of my work in 3.5 hours. I came home around 11pm and fell (literally) into bed. Gordon had the loving sense to let me sleep in this morning, so he got Evan ready for school and on the bus and set Sierra up with some cartoons for the morning. I slept until 10am!!! Yes-what a wonderful feeling. Then I put my feet on the floor. Oh crap, I can barely move! I hurt all over.Well, one thing is for sure. I will work on some muscle and maybe lose a few pounds in the process. It is a great workout! Anytime you want to sweat a little, call me up and come work with me! It's a killer!!!!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Evan has been home sick for the last two days. He has a terrible cough and a yucky nose. Every time he coughs, his throat hurts.I guess guys start out young. It is a known fact that when a guy gets sick, they turn into babies. They can't do anything, they don't have energy, they want to just sit and veg or sleep. When a woman gets sick, she is expected to still take care of the house, the kids, the dogs, the farm animals, all the running around, making dinner, etc. You get the drift, right?Well, Evan is like that too. I really thought I could train him to be a little different, but he is whiny and grouchy. The one thing I will say about him is that after two days, he has finally gotten bored with just watching cartoons. He wants to play and run around, but I say no. If you are sick, you need to chill out, right?It is tough being the mom. I am no fun and don't let him do anything! Sound familiar to any of you?Enjoy your day!! Just think; you could have a grouchy guy at home like me!!!

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Let's face it. Every once in a while, your kids do something that just makes you proud and you need to brag a little bit about them. So bare with me while I take a minute to put my kids on a pedestal!

Today was Evan's last day of basketball. He decided this year that he would like to give it a try. He really likes to shoot hoops in our barn, so he thought it would be fun to actually play on a team. At first, he was a little confused as to what to do, and all of the different moves and rules. But as the season wore on, he actually started to enjoy it while learning the basics. During the season, the director put on a hoop shoot contest. He had every one of the boys start out, and dwindled down to the top four. Now, just to let you know, there were five teams of boys with about 8-10 per team. Lo and behold, we got a call on Wednesday last week to tell us that Evan made the finals! We were really happy, but very shocked. I mean, he is playing with kids that are a couple of years older than him and have been playing for a couple of seasons. It was pretty amazing. We were told that no matter what, he would get a trophy for making it to the finals, but today's shoot-out would determine whether he got 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th. We were very happy to find out that he did a great job today and ended up with a 2nd place trophy out of all of those boys. Way to go Evan!!! You are a natural sportsman!!

Then, we move on to Sierra. One thing that has always amazed me is Sierra's ability to entertain herself. I am always calling out to her to find out where she is or what she is doing because she can find things to do on her own. And amazingly, she rarely is doing anything that she might get in trouble for. Today, for example, she decided to have a picnic tea party with her friends. She called me into the room after about an hour and this is what I found. She was very proud of herself and having a very good visit with her friends.

After she was done with her tea party, she decided to build a fort in her room so she could sleep in the fort tonight. She spent a lot of time on this and called me up to see her work after about two hours. I can't believe her focus! She did a great job on her fort and I told her I needed a picture of it because I don't think I could ever build anything as good. She told me she was very proud of herself and can't wait to sleep there tonight.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

I made a mistake. I wrote that Tiffani tagged me in a blog. She did not! What she did was honor me with an award. I would like to apologize to Tiffani for not recognizing it as what it should be, and to properly display my award.

Thanks, Tiff, for thinking of me and honoring me with the lemonade award. Love you!

Monday, February 2, 2009

Since Grammy and Papa have come up here, we tend to get dinner done faster, homework, baths, animal feedings and all the other stuff that we need to get done in an evening. That has freed up our evenings for game nights. We have been playing a lot of games in the last two weeks. After we are done with everything in the evening, we will sit down and play a couple of games. These pictures show us playing Yahtzee!! Other games we have played a lot this week are Aggrevation, Princess Slipper, Battleship, and Air Hockey. The kids got a new game for Christmas called Snorta. We are going to play that in the next night or so before Grammy and Papa go home. We really enjoy taking the time to play games with the kids. We always have a really good time!